If you are in France and you see a Notice headed Vide-greniers What event does this describe? Me? I'd be there. You? Have no equivalent for the rest of Europe (bar the UK) if anybody knows what the Local Translation is?
PS Google Language tools server is Down again!
Posts: 13643 | Location: 6 miles west of Wigan UK | Registered: 06-05-02
Bedstor, I think it's garage sales...beats the British equivalent; car boot sales, which are held in muddy fields, standing on cowpats and thistles, every time.
It is a commercially organized (usually by the municipality) "yard sale" where the ordinary citizens are trying to sell the old stuff they want to get rid of.
Posts: 6465 | Location: u.s.a, south Florida | Registered: 06-03-02
It's what we call 'a car boot sale'.Common enough around here (Antibes) but not nearly as common as its equivalent in Britain.The vide-greniers sales don't attract professional dealers posing as laymen, both buying and selling, to the extent that our car boot sales do.
Yes Fred There are several land owners that are local to me that run these And some are really Professionally run
There was also an local Auctioneer that converted to the cause running a cheapo goods auction besides his normal auction sales and they were very popular...Though most of the crowd were aware of the trade buyers/seller (they look out of place ) The fellow that ran it retired last year and nobody took over the business hence no auction Forum posting about local C/Bs to me http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=164635
There's just a few around Cambridge and Newmarket. The hot place for car boot sales is, as you'd expect, Essex (all those chavs and Del Boys, you see ). Some of the stuff 'fell off the back of a lorry', no doubt, and there's quite a trade in fake and copy 'antiques' in these places. This latter trade is helped by programmes like 'Cash in the Attic' and 'Antiques Roadshow' and the increased public awareness of certain types of 'collectables'.One piece of 'French bronze sculpture' looks like any other to a layman, but the 'other' is spelter
They used to be quite popular round here but are dying off lately. Too many dealers and traders selling new stuff. Tameside council stopped all traders/dealers recently so no-one turns up. We have quite a few collectors fairs which I love going to but they are pricing themselves out of the market. It's cheaper on ebay if you know what you are buying. I collect Cunard memorabilia and have bought loads of genuine stuff on ebay for only a few pounds each.
Posts: 7968 | Location: Hyde.Cheshire. UK | Registered: 10-18-02
Originally posted by Jenny Roberts: They used to be quite popular round here but are dying off lately. Too many dealers and traders selling new stuff. Tameside council stopped all traders/dealers recently so no-one turns up. We have quite a few collectors fairs which I love going to but they are pricing themselves out of the market. It's cheaper on ebay if you know what you are buying. I collect Cunard memorabilia and have bought loads of genuine stuff on ebay for only a few pounds each.
Jenny, do you ever get 'sleepers' on e-bay ? (A sleeper is a lot which has been seriously undervalued by the auctioneer.They are often oriental pieces undervalued because there are so many C19 copies and similar pieces in the market and only a specialist with a good eye can spot the true, original, old rarity.That said, they do occur in brown furniture, a depressed market at present. You may see a table or cabinet valued at £800-£1,000 fetch over £40k at auction, once the dealers and collectors have done their work)
You?
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